@DG how so? Most likely it will be superseded by the next Xbox so unless MS are going to allow some sort of upgrade path (not likely) or make the X the base for next gen (possible given the idea of a "family" of devices) getting an X to future proof does not seem like a good idea.

Review

Below

Inconsistent spelunking

Below had an inordinately long development schedule, mentioned all the way back at E3 2013 alongside the yet-to-be-released Xbox One. Developer Capybara Games went quiet in 2016 before suddenly announcing Below would be release in mid-December last year. The distinctive visual style, haunting atmosphere, sense of isolation, and basic combat remains identical to their original vision; however, an increasingly punishing roguelike progression system, insta-kill traps, and cheap enemies, all do their best to stifle exploration the longer you play, something every other element of the game encourages.

Welcome to the island - every wanderer will start off on this beach, so get used to seeing it frequently as the game progresses.

If there’s a coherent narrative in Below, I’ve yet to piece it together, and things get progressively insane towards the endgame. Thankfully, you’ll likely be too focused on avoiding traps, slaying foes, scavenging for supplies, and taking in the many awe-inspiring vistas to notice. The basic premise: Your first wanderer arrives on a deserted, wind-swept island, finds themselves a lantern whose beam can unlock rune-sealed doors, and begins their descent. You navigate several distinct environments - including trap-filled caves, icy caverns, and a derelict city - all of which are filled with an assortment of deadly creatures, some sort of crazed blood-drinking mutants, and eventually Eldritch horrors. When you fail, another wanderer arrives on the island, collects the lantern from the corpse of your former adventurer, and sets off again.

...you’ll likely be too focused on avoiding traps, slaying foes, scavenging for supplies, and taking in the many awe-inspiring vistas...

As far as environmental storytelling goes, the island is littered with corpses and shipwrecks - reinforcing the idea that several generations of explorers have attempted the descent before - though a friendly face is hard to find, aside from some cute fox-like creatures I once hunted for food and a terrifying-looking shade that sold armour and supplies. Below offers up is no dialogue, no notes to find, no intelligible scrawling on the walls. It’s ultimately up to you to decide who your wanderer is – subsequent generations seem to alternate between male and female – and what is the driving force that pushes them further and further below.

There are several beautiful yet hostile environments to explore as you descend.

Gameplay mechanics are surprisingly straight-forward in Below and, despite a complete lack of tutorials, easy to grasp within the first hour of play. Played entirely from an isometric viewpoint, movement is not dissimilar to that of a twin-stick shooter. You can run and climb automatically, back-pedal while slashing at advancing enemies, dash in any direction, and bring up your lantern to aim the beam at runes (slaying foes generates orbs that keep it charged). Several melee weapons offer a few distinct advantages but combat typically boils down to timing your strikes and dodges. The bow is primarily used for hitting distant switches, burning overgrown entrances, or picking off an unaware foe with special arrows. Combat revolves around crowd-management, with most enemies falling to one or two thrusts; however, later enemies are more agile than your wanderer and you'll find yourself fighting the controls, making many deaths feel cheap and unfair (especially once you discover the joys of bleeding damage).

Gameplay mechanics are surprisingly straight-forward in Below and, despite a complete lack of tutorials, easy to grasp within the first hour of play.

You can’t craft new weapons and armour (they function more as random drops from glowing loot pillars), so the crafting system is dedicated to the survival mechanics. Your wanderer needs to stay fed, hydrated, and warm, though not necessarily all at the same time, depending on the environment. The opening caves offer a good mix of resources and you’ll rarely find yourself fixated on these mechanics. However, exploring the icy caves requires you to craft torches to keep warm and water becomes an issue as it’s locked up in ice. Deeper still, the ancient city ruins are warm but offer scant few food and water sources. The further you progress, the more intrusive the survival mechanics become.

You'll quickly get to grips with the dozen or so item symbols and start experimenting with crafting and cooking to create new supplies and food types for your adventurer.

When it comes to food, every item can be consumed raw for minimal effect (tip: don’t eat uncooked innards), so it’s best to combine them with water at a fireplace to make more hearty soups and elixirs. You can craft equipment at fireplaces or on the fly, with sticks, strings, shards, embers, leather, and moss coming together to form torches, arrows, bandages, and a myriad of other implausible items. It takes a little time to discover all the combinations, but you’ll quickly figure the essentials (i.e. torches). An hour or so into Below, you access the “Pocket”, a dreamlike location that gives you the opportunity to store supplies and gear, unburdening your existing wanderer or providing an early boost for the next one.

The basic level objective rarely deviates from "find key" and "find exit" but, as you push further below, you’ll want to keep an eye out for shortcuts back to the island, secret rooms with campfires or chests, and hidden upgrades for your lantern.

Both the island’s surface and the unique locations that connect each level are constant features, with unlocked shortcuts and paths accessible to your subsequent wanderer, while the arrangement of other rooms changes with each death. The basic level objective rarely deviates from "find key" and "find exit" but, as you push further below, you’ll want to keep an eye out for shortcuts back to the island, secret rooms with campfires or chests, and hidden upgrades for your lantern. You can “upgrade” one campfire - using the same orbs that power your lantern - to create a single fast-travel point but your fresh wanderer will typically be limited to using existing shortcuts in an attempt to get back to your previous body and collect the lantern that is essential to progress (and useful for highlighting traps in the environment). If you die on the way, the lantern remains but your items are lost – you should know the drill by now.

Right up until the final stretch, your basic goal remains the same - hunt for a level key and find the door leading down.

There’s no shortage of ways to die in Below but, initially, the game finds a solid balance between encouraging exploration and managing risks. Unfortunately, the later challenge – both from the environment and enemies – coupled with increasingly long slogs to your corpse, discourage the player from exploring everything the island has to offer, focusing instead on the roguelike combat and survival mechanics. I thoroughly enjoyed the first 6 hours, pushing deeper and deeper, losing a wanderer along the way but quickly getting back on track. The subsequent 6 hours I put into the game consisted of long corpse-recovery runs, grinding for resources I had lost, and making little headway. I started sticking to the main path, immediately descending to the next level rather than fully exploring the previous one, desperate to find a convenient shortcut that could mitigate the grind. It was at this point I released the roguelike mechanics were getting in the way of the engaging exploration elements. Perhaps this was Capybara Games' intent all along but it caught me by surprise.

Part of what makes exploring in Below such a joy is the striking isometric visuals, dynamic lighting, and outstanding soundtrack.

Part of what makes exploring in Below such a joy is the striking isometric visuals, dynamic lighting, and outstanding soundtrack. Simple and rugged geometric environments - including columnar rocks, light-refracting ice crystals, and hazy ruins – are shrouded in darkness, with distant features out of focus. The game pulls the camera in or out depending on the scene but, more often than not, you’re controlling your wanderer from a great distance, emphasising how small and vulnerable they are in this massive and unforgiving environment. Light from your torch or the lantern illuminates the immediate surroundings but cast long shadows, obscuring traps and enemies that could be lying in wait. The music, typically subdued and haunting, can suddenly swell as you emerge into a spectacular cavern or onto a cliff overlooking the ocean. All audiovisual elements work in tandem create an incredibly atmosphere world and, given their simplicity, performance is never an issue.

As infuriating as the lowermost levels become, it makes finding a shortcut back to the opening beach that much more satisfying. Also, those visuals!

In summary, Below is a game of two halves. The first, a tense and atmospheric adventure into the depths of a mysterious island; striking a perfect balance by encouraging and rewarding exploration, while still providing a stiff challenge. The second half is an infuriatingly tough slog, full of cheap deaths and lengthy treks to recover the damnable lantern, discouraging you from taking any risks while exploring. If you’re a fan of roguelikes and mastering their systems, you might find a lot to love. However, if you were after an exploration-driven game with survival as a secondary consideration, Below will lose its appeal after several hours.